


Sweater Weather

by Skyson



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV)
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:02:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,439
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26841856
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skyson/pseuds/Skyson
Summary: A little thing inspired by a picture of a sweater I once saw on Tumblr.
Relationships: Rupert Giles/Buffy Summers
Comments: 14
Kudos: 34





	Sweater Weather

**Author's Note:**

> It’s October and _finally_ a bit cooler weather at home now, so here’s a little thing I wrote what feels like eons ago...

* * *

“Geez, Grandma, what’s next? Milk and cookies?” Dawn snorted, eyeing Buffy’s sweater.  
  


“Are you guys hungry? _Do_ you want cookies?” Buffy asked of her younger sister’s study group.  
  


Nick and Jason looked at one another and nodded hopefully, and Rachel half-shrugged her shoulders before nodding carefully in agreement.  
  


Ever since the whole mess with 'Dark Willow', The First, and closing up The Hellmouth for a few good millennia or so, Buffy had started taking raising Dawn seriously. Not that she needed 'raising', exactly, as she was a senior in high school - but Buffy was still legally her guardian and she was intent to take the job seriously.  
  


Deep down, Dawn appreciated the efforts. Being able to get away with stuff was only cool for a little while - structure was _necessary_. And maybe that was Giles, talking, but in any case Dawn liked to think that she'd done some maturing of her own in the aftermath of the apocalypse.  
  


Sometimes, though, Dawn thought Buffy tried a little _too_ hard.  
  


“Buffy- ” Dawn started to tell her sister to leave them alone, but then she realized that cookies actually sounded pretty good. Dawn didn’t have as good a pout as Buffy, but she learned what she could from the master. “Actually... if you’re up to it...” Still, though - she couldn’t let her get away with that getup. “But really? A cable-knit sweater? Since when did you turn into a 40-year-old single mother?”  
  


“Hey,” Buffy furrowed her brow, “Sweaters are comfy! Besides,” She pulled at the hem to tug the fabric straight, “Look! It’s a skull!”  
  


“That’s pretty cool, Ms. Summers.” Nick offered up, and Buffy smiled happily, smoothing the sweater back into place.  
  


“Thank you, Nick.” She replied pointedly, and then speaking to the whole group she added, “Cookies will take a bit, so if you guys want any other kind of snacks in the meantime, you can raid the pantry as you please. If you see any weird brands though, don’t touch ‘em. They’re from England and they aren’t for sharing.” She stepped toward the kitchen, adding a mildly annoyed “Apparently.” beneath her breath.  
  


Dawn elbowed Nick,  
  


“Stop flirting with my sister.”  
  


“What?” He protested innocently. “The skull is cool, that’s all!”  
  


The front door opened, catching Buffy’s attention at the other end of the hall, and the smile on her face was blinding when Giles stepped into the foyer.  
  


“Giles!” Buffy skipped down the hall to greet him, and Dawn sighed.  
  


“Now the cookies are gonna take _twice_ as long,”  
  


“Why do you say that?” Rachel asked, as Mike thought aloud,  
  


“Mr. Giles? Wasn't he the librarian before we got stuck with old Ms. Trench? My brother used to talk about him.”

  
“Yeah, he hasn't been a librarian since the old high school blew up. Giles has been away for work,” Dawn explained wryly, “And in Buffy’s world he’s definitely more important than gooey fresh-baked cookies.”

  
“Are they friends?” Mike continued to wonder. “That must be cool, being chummy with the teachers after graduation.”

  
“She’s a little _too_ chummy, maybe,” Nick frowned a little as he watched the two in question hug one another lingeringly.

  
“How was the flight? Oh, look!” Buffy stepped back and tugged at her sweater again, showing it off proudly. “I wore this just for you! See the skull? Isn’t that neat? I thought it was very appropriate.”

  
“How is that appropriate?!” Rachel wondered. “Halloween was a month and a half ago.”

  
Giles smiled warmly as he observed Buffy's attire, and nodded to her.

  
“Macabre, yet chic. Very you.” Giles approved teasingly, and Buffy beamed up at him. They stood there smiling at one another for an awkward moment of silence - well, it seemed awkward to Dawn.

  
She cleared her throat loudly.

  
“Hey Giles! Welcome home!” She called out, and he finally looked into the living room, surprise growing on his face when he realized that he and Buffy weren’t alone.

  
“Hello, Dawn,” Giles greeted the younger Summers warmly, but definitely in a different sort of tone than he’d used with Buffy. He glanced over the study group appraisingly. “Studying for finals?” He guessed, and Dawn nodded.

  
“Yeah, you wouldn’t happen to have the test answers, would you?” She joked, and he chuckled.

  
“Even if I did, do you really think that I would give them to you?” He winked at her, then faced Buffy again.

  
“Here, I’ll take your bag up for you. How’s the jet lag? I was about to start a batch of cookies for the kids, but if you'd rather nap I’ll set a few to the side for you,” She hoisted his duffel onto her shoulder with ease, and led the way up the stairs.  
  
  
_Kids._ As if she were so old. Dawn rolled her eyes.

  
“I’ll help with the baking,” Giles offered. “If I go to sleep now, I’ll wake up at an ungodly hour in the night,” Their voices drifted off as they moved into the master room, and Dawn focused back toward her schoolwork.

  
“Does Mr. Giles live here?” Mike wondered with surprise. “That would explain a lot of my brother’s stories, actually...”

  
“He didn’t always,” Dawn corrected quickly, really not wanting them to think too hard about it. “When Giles moved back to the States, Mom was already... gone, and he’d sold his old apartment. He didn’t have to pay rent, here, at least until after he resettled and stuff. And he helped Buffy take care of the house and look after me while she was still sort of figuring out her own life and... stuff.”  
  


The explanation didn’t cover nearly half of it, but none of these guys knew anything about The Slayer or being risen from the dead or the almost end of the world. The group seemed to take Dawn's explanation well enough, and they focused back on their schoolwork. Jason was her boyfriend, and even he didn't know the real story - though he was more used to Giles than the others. Janice, of course, as official best friend, knew pretty much everything about Dawn's secrets - minus her, um, heritage. She actually thought Giles and Buffy were cute, and while Dawn secretly agreed, she still always put up a fuss whenever Janice would coo over them.

  
Just because she was now more-mature, almost-adult Dawn, didn't mean that she would resist any opportunity to haggle her sister. Even if she _was_ happier than Dawn had ever seen her.  
  


When the two older adults eventually came back downstairs, Buffy’s hair was ruffled from its up-do and Giles’ button-up was rumpled, as well as his tie skewed. Dawn rolled her eyes again, but Buffy only quirked her eyebrow at her before practically skipping to the kitchen. None of her friends seemed to notice, thank God - Dawn'd rather not have any more conversation about her sister's relationships.  
  


“Chocolate chip okay with everyone?” Buffy asked cheerily as she passed the doorway. Everyone confirmed, and went back to work with a little more energy than before - fresh-baked sweets were always a good incentive.  
  


“Mr. Giles does more than live here, doesn’t he,” Nick pouted, apparently also catching the rumpled state the other two had been in, and Dawn couldn't help but smirk at him a little.  
  


“Told you not to flirt with my sister.”  
  


“He’s wearing _suspenders_ ,” Nick exclaimed in soft horror, and Dawn snorted as she turned a page in her text book and focused on studying again.  
  


“If you knew how many times I’ve seen her grab those things to either throw him against the wall or pull him closer to her so she could- ” Dawn stopped when she realized she was babbling aloud. “Anyway, she likes the suspenders.”  
  


“Gross.” Mike furrowed his nose, and Rachel snorted.  
  


“I don’t know, I can see the allure. I mean, the whole British professorial thing kind of works for him, you know? And that accent, _oh man_.” She fanned herself with her hand playfully, Janice giggled and nudged Rachel in total agreement, and Dawn groaned.  
  


“Please stop. I have to live with them. I try not to think about it and I really don’t want you guys making me think about it.”  
  


"Mm, I've missed you," Buffy's sigh wasn't quite covered by the clinking of dishes as they gathered baking materials, and neither was Giles' low, happy chuckle.  
  


"Hey! Keep it PG in there!" Dawn shouted, and her friends all snickered, half-discomforted and half-amused.  
  


"Man." Nick whined under his breath, and Jason nudged him as he softly laughed at him.  
  


"You're not nearly old enough for her anyway, dude," Jason consoled his buddy, and Dawn snorted.

  
Oh, they had no idea.

* * *


End file.
